A lorry driver will be switching from an HGV to a modest Volvo when he takes part in a charity rally in memory of his niece who died aged just three weeks.

Marc Collins, 34, decided to take on the Two Ball Rally from London to Nice to raise money for Action Medical Research for Children.

His sister, Leanne Collins, had twins in 2011, but sadly her daughter died from necrotising enterocolitis, a deadly bowel condition that affects premature babies.

Marc said: “It has been really tough and very, very difficult for everyone. I don’t know how Leanne worked though it.

“The funeral was really awful because normally it is someone older in the family and it helps the grieving process. But for months afterwards I was still having bad dreams.

“It was an unpleasant experience. If it had happened to my child I don’t think I could have coped.

“That’s why I want research into it, and all the money I can raise will hopefully stop it happening to another family.” The quest must be completed in a car that costs less than £567, so along with driving partner and family friend Mark Rogers he will venture through 10 countries to the south of France in August next year.

Mr Collins added: “I’m hoping to raise about 5,000. Our Volvo V70 is a bit beaten up, and only cost us £480. A lot of people do the rally as a bit of fun, but there is the option to do it for charity as well.

“The route starts in Britain, goes through France, Belgium and Luxembourg, then through Germany, Austria and Switzerland. We go to Lake Como in Italy, then into Monaco, and we finish in Nice in France.”

The team hope to gain corporate sponsors and are keen for donations. To find out more search for the team’s Facebook page: Two Ball Rally Challenge, 2 Men in a Shed. To donate, visit http://www.action.org.uk/sponsor/2meninashed